Young Achiever

To Chase Your Dream

Promiti Prova Chowdhury
Photo: Kazi Tahsin Agaz Apurbo

Seven days stay at the Buckingham Palace and earning 3500 pounds, sounds like a dream, isn't it? This rare dream was pursued by 27 year old Murfy Ruzdy, from Bangladesh. Ruzdy, a student of Tourism and Hotel Management, had the luck of working as a supervisor at the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton in London.

“In 2010, I went to the UK to obtain a MBA in Hospitality Management at Cardiff School of Management, Whales. I used to work at the Mercure London Bridge hotel as a Food and Beverage Attendant, four days a week and rest of the days I used to do classes at Whales,” says Ruzdy.

He adds, “Within four months I was promoted as a Conference and Banqueting Coordinator. After working there for a year and a half, I joined Hotel Sheraton in London as a Conference and Banqueting Supervisor Officer. This was a better position with a better salary and great benefits. I used to earn 1400 pounds a month which resulted in 18,500 pounds a year. To add to that, banqueting used to get me loads of tips! With all of that, I ran my MBA and other expenses smoothly.”

“In 2011, the two most unforgettable things happened to me. One is that I became the 'Employee of the Year' at Sheraton which presented me with a three day and three night tour in Paris. And the other one is that, I was one of the 15 hoteliers chosen from 25 five star hotels across London, to supervise at the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.”

“Also, I was the only Bangladeshi amongst them,” Ruzdy adds.

So how was the experience at the wedding? “It was nerve wrecking but enjoyable at the same time. Every supervisor had his own team of waiters. Generally in hotels we have a contract signed with the client and the hall is designed accordingly. We get a guest list and attend them accordingly. All these are supervised by the manager.

However, at the wedding we did not have a guest list but my duty was to supervise the waiters to help the guests enter, seat and serve them. I cherish the first six days when we thoroughly rehearsed to serve food and wine with dummy guests and empty plates and glasses!” replies Ruzdy.

Ruzdy got admitted to the Department of Tourism and Hotel Management in IBAIS University in Dhaka in 2005. He says, “Before joining IBAIS, I sat for the entrance exam to join the Army, which I failed! I was depressed and one day I went to Hotel Sheraton with an acquaintance who used to work there. That was my first entry to a five star hotel. Charmed with the environment, I decided to make my career here. Even today, some people say that 'one does not really need a degree to wash utensils!' Unfortunately the area is not well-recognised in our society yet.”

“Here, people do not know the difference between hotel and restaurant. A roadside eatery is also known as a hotel. Whereas, a hotel is a place where you can both stay and have food.”

Ruzdy is proud to be a 'Hotelier,' a term, a profession still quite unrecognised in this society. But, surely he weaved his way towards his dream and plans to serve this country by working in the same sector. He returned to Bangladesh in February last year and is currently working as a Food and Beverage Project Manager at Panigram Resort Ltd, an upcoming project of La-Paz Group, Paris, France in Jessore.

“So those who are studying Tourism and Hotel Management in Bangladesh and those who are willing to, I would like to say that it is way more than what it seems to be from the outside. You need to grow excellent communication skills and stamina to reach a peak. Trust me, your hard work will eventually pay off,” says Ruzdy.

DID YOU KNOW?

Alexander Graham Bell

Eminent scientist, inventor, engineer and innovator, who is credited with inventing the first practical telephone, Alexander Graham Bell was born on March 3, 1847 (today he would've turned 166 years old!). As a child, young Alexander displayed a natural curiosity about his world, resulting in gathering botanical specimens as well as experimenting even at an early age. His best friend was Ben Herdman, a neighbor whose family operated a flour mill, the scene of many forays. Young Aleck asked what needed to be done at the mill. He was told wheat had to be dehusked through a laborious process and at the age of 12, Bell built a homemade device that combined rotating paddles with sets of nail brushes, creating a simple dehusking machine that was put into operation and used steadily for a number of years. In return, John Herdman gave both boys the run of a small workshop in which to "invent". At an early age, however, he was enrolled at the Royal High School, Edinburgh, Scotland, which he left at age 15, completing only the first four forms. His school record was undistinguished, marked by absenteeism and lacklustre grades. His main interest remained in the sciences, especially biology. Upon leaving school, Bell travelled to London to live with his grandfather, Alexander Bell. During the year he spent with his grandfather, a love of learning was born, with long hours spent in serious discussion and study. The elder Bell took great efforts to have his young pupil learn to speak clearly and with conviction, the attributes that his pupil would need to become a teacher himself. At age 16, Bell secured a position as a "pupil-teacher" of elocution and music, in Weston House Academy, at Elgin, Moray, Scotland. Although he was enrolled as a student in Latin and Greek, he instructed classes himself in return for board and £10 per session. The following year, he attended the University of Edinburgh; joining his older brother Melville who had enrolled there the previous year. In 1868, not long before he departed for Canada with his family, Aleck completed his matriculation exams and was accepted for admission to the University of London.

Information Source: Internet